Electric switch



Sept. 19, 1950 s. o. uNTERscHuETz ETAL I ELECTRIC SWITCH Filed April 25, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORS-' m3 ci y/ fl d yzzz ens'cflzzef 5502' P Gimp var Sept. 19, 1950 Filed April 25, 1947 S. O. UNTERSCHUETZ ETI'AL ELECTRIC SWITCH 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TORS I Patented Sept. 19, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ELECTRIC swrron Siegfried 0. Unterschuetz, Chicago, and Georg P. Gaspar, Cicero, Ill.

Application April 25, 1947, Serial No. 743,880

2 Claims.

.operating parts, in consequence of which it is extremely compact, of low cost construction and easily assembled for use or disassembled for re- ;pair or adjustment should such be necessary.

Fig; 1 is an exploded perspective of the principal parts of which a preferred form of switch is comprised;

Figs. 2 and 3 are fragmentary cross-sectional views taken substantially along the line 2--2 of Fig. 5, showing the relative positions of the internal parts in open and closed contact condition;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view of the entire switch shown with the cover therefor removed;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken substan-- tially along the line 55 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6' is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line (56 of Fig. 4;

As shown in Fig. 1, the switch in its entirety generally comprises a body or case Ill; a pair of ducting thermosetting plastic material and 1s preferably generally annular in top or bottom plan view except for a laterally planar area tangential to the annular configuration of the upstanding exterior side wall l2. Planar area :1

has an opening l3 therein which openly communicates with an arcuate slot or chamber l4 formed within case It) for the reception and guidance of the hereinafter described switchactuating pull chain. Body side wall I2 is provided with spaced openings l5, l6 for reception of electric wires, as best shown in Fig. 2, and similarly oriented with respect to each other and in open communication with aforementioned openings I 5, I6, are slots or chambers [1, I8 which, as hereinafter more fully described, are adapted to frictionally receive and retain contact members 30, 30 in the assembled condition of the switch.

Chambers IT, IS are'in open communication through openings I9, 20 with annular rotor-receiving chamber 2| which is located medially of body or case Ill. It will be noted that the above described arrangement positions pull chain receivingbhamber l4 and each contact member receiving chamber IT, IS in radially or circumferentially spaced relation to annular rotor-receiving chamber 2|.

In preferred form, body or case I0 is provided with one integral end wall 22. On the inner surface of wall 22 and medially of chamber 2| is formed a hollow cylindrical boss or bearing 23 one side wall of which is provided with a recess 24 to receive the outwardly bent end 4| of torsion spring 40 and to form a base for said spring end." As above mentioned, boss or bearing 23 is medially hollowed out to frictionally receive one end of a parts-supporting cylindrical axle 25.

The walls separating contact member receiving chambers l1, l8 from rotor-receiving chamber 2! extend to the full height of side wall l2, but the arcuate wall separating pull chain receiving chamber 14 from rotor-receiving chamber 2| is in part out down or recessed as at 26 to accommodate and guide the outwardly extending arm 'H of rotor-actuating member 10.

In: an areagenerally opposite planar area It an opening 29 is provided to receive the threaded .end 96 of cover-retaining self-threading screw 95.

Identical contact members 30, 30, best shown in Figs. 2 and 3, each comprise a unitary flat spring-like conducting metal structure which along one endis bent backward toward itself jacent walls, their ends 3|, 3| abuttingly engaging abutments 21, 28. Beyond the U each contact member is bent backwardly a slight amount as at 33 then forwardly in an are as at 34 the curve of which coincides generally with the shape of the hereinafter described peripheral teeth 6| of rotor 60.

Contact spider 50 is a unitary metal current carrying structure preferably formed of copper or copper alloy. It comprises a. generally rectangular planar base portion 5| provided with an annular central opening 52 the cross dimension of which is such as to permit the spider'to be externally borne on boss 23 in the assembled condition of the switch. Contact springs 53 are bent to generall right angled relation to base portion 5| and are arcuately curved to conform generally to those alternate teeth 6|- of rotor '60 which they engage and by which they are carried.

Rotor 60 is a unitary structure of non-conductive material. It is provided with an even num ber of peripheral ratchet teeth 6| (in this instance shown as eight) which have arcuate exterior surfaces interspersed between which are abrupt re-entrantindentations, one of which is indicated by reference numeral 62-. The free outer ends 34, 34 ofcontacts 30, 30 contact the arcuate exterior surfaces of spaced teeth 6|, 6| in the broken-circuit condition of the switch or the exterior arcuate surfaces of laterally adjacent contact prongs 53, 53 in the closed-circuit condition of the switch. Rotor 60 has a cylindrical periphery 63 and at its end' opposite teeth BI is provided with a ratchet surface comprising a number of arcuate ratchet teeth 64 having abrupt faces 65; There are as many ratchet teeth 64 as there are other ratchet teeth 61' and all the ratchet teeth are similarly oriented to permit only uni-directional rotation of rotor 6| on boss 23, said rotor being centrally bored to provide an opening 66 into which said boss may axially extend.

A rotor actuating member I0 is provided with spaced arcuate arms I2, In-2 which are inwardly inclined from the normal plane of the body of the structure so that the free ends I3, I3 thereof contact abrupt ratchet faces 65' and may impart uni-directional rotation to rotor 60. Rotor actuating member 10 has a'central opening I4 to receive and partially rotate upon axle 25. Member I0 is in part slotted as at 15 and recessed as at I6 to receive theend 4-2 of torsion spring 40, the opposite end M of which is fixedly retained in hereinabove described slot 24. As previously mentioned, in the assembled switch, actuating member arm II extends into pull chain receiving chamber I4 through the wall recess indicated by reference numeral 26 and the pull chain 11 is attached to the end of arm 1| by a; pivotal connector I8. When rotor actuating member I0 is about to be swung through the arc comprising its full operating movement on axle 25 the free ends I3, I3 of arms I2, I2 contact a air of opposed abrupt ratchet faces 65, 65 moving ratchet 60 a distance equivalent to the peripheral dimension of a single ratchet tooth 6|. When pull cord or chain TI is released, actuating member I0 automatically returns to its starting position under the urging of torsion spring 40, the free ends I3, I3 of arcuate arms" I2, I2 sliding along the inclined surfaces 61 of end ratchet teeth 64 until engaged with newly brought forward abrupt faces 65, 65 and in readiness for a new contact making or breaking action.

While but one spacer or washer 80 is shown in Fig. 1, it will be seen from reference to Figs.

5 and 6 that, if desired, at least two thereof may b used to provide free space between the case or body I0, the cover and the actual switch mechanism. It will also be seen that the free end axle :25 terminates coplanar with the upper or end surfaces of the body walls, cover 90 in its attached and body-covering position serving to hold the axle firmly in desired position.

When all the parts shown in Fig. 1 have been assembled within body or case I0 in the manner above described and as shown in Figs. 2 through 6, the cover 90 may be attached. This is done by aligning cover opening 9| with body opening 29 and drawing the parts together by inserting screw between them. Opening 29 is unthreaded at the time of insertion of the above mentioned screw which, during insertion, cuts out its own retaining threads. With screw 95 inserted, cover 90 is rotated into full body coverin g [position at which time cover annular periphery 93 will register with body portion exterior wall I2 and cover linear portion 94' will register with planar body area I I. Pull chain 1'! may then be inserted through the interior opening I02 of clip cylindrical portion NH, and clip I00 may then be attached in the manner hereinafter described.

Clip I00 comprises a planar portion I03 of generally rectangular shape bent upwardly along opposite lateral sides of which are a relatively narrow side portion I04 having spaced inbent lugs I05 thereon and a side portion I0I, wider than portion I04, which has spaced inbent lugs I08 thereon. As' best shown in Fig. 1, cover 90 isprovided with a pair of aligned spaced openings 02, 92 adjacent edge portion 94', and, as shown in Fig. 6 body portion I0 has similar opening's I09 formed therein. Clip I00 is most readily attached by positioning lugs I08 Within openings I09 and biasing side portion I00 over the edge of cover 90 until lugs I05 may be snapped into openings 92, 92.

We claim:

1. In an electric switch, a unitary case having integral interior walls which divide the body into a plurality of switch parts-receiving chambers, the parts contained within said chambers being insulated from contact or arcing relation by said walls, said chambers including a centrally disposed rotor-receiving chamber, at least two electric contact member-receiving chambers and a pull chain-receiving chamber, said contact member-receiving' chambers being in adjacent relation to one another and in generally circumferential relation to said rotor-receiving chamber and the wall separating each contact memberreceiving chamber from said rotor-receiving chamber having an opening therein communicating with the latter through which the free ends of electric contact members may extend in rotor-engaging relation, said pull chain-receiving chamber being of generally arcuate configuration and arranged exteriorly of said rotorreceivin g chamber and circumferentially spaced from said contact-receiving chambers, the wall separating said rotor-receiving and said pull chain -receiving chamber being in part of less height than the other walls to permit extension therethrough of a relatively thin rotor-actuating member one end of which is engaged by [a pull chain contained Within and guided by the wall of said pull chain-receiving chamber, one end of the latter being in open communication with the exterior of said case so the pull chain may be used. to a tuate t e switch p 2. In an electric switch the combination comprising a molded unitary body having an integral end wall, integral side walls and integral interior walls, said Walls defining in said body a medial chamber, a pair of contact member-receiving chambers and a flexible element-receiving chamber, an axle mounted on said end wall and extending upwardly centrally of said medial chamber, a contact-making rotor means borne by said axle, a pair of contact members each bent backwardl upon itself at one end, said pair of contact member-receiving chambers frictionally retaining the baclcwardly bent portions of said contact members and being in spaced but adjacent relation to one another and in generally circumferential relation to said medial chamber, the wall separating each of said pair of chambers from said medial chamber having a recess therein through which the free ends of said arms extend into said medial chamber in r0t0r;means-contacting relation, a rotor-actuating member mounted for spring loaded reciprocal movement on said axle, said member having a thin operating arm, a flexible element positioned for back and forth movement in said flexible element-receiving chamber and engaged with the free end of the operating arm of said rotoractuating member, said flexible element-receiving chamber being of generally arcuate configuration to guide said flexible element and being arranged circumferentially of said medial chamber and generally opposite to said contact member-receiving chambers, the wall separating said last-named chamber from said medial chamber being recessed suificiently along its top to permit reciprocal movement thereabove of the arm of said rotor-actuating member, a generally planar parts-retaining cover for said body, and means for holding said cover on said body.

SIEGFRIED O. UNTERSCHUETZ. GEORGE P. GASPAR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Re. 22,882 Popp May 20, 1947 958,554 Slad May 17, 1910 1,009,401 Freeman Nov. 21, 1911 2,079,800 Grant May 11, 1937 2,295,713 Buckley Sept. 15, 1942 2,389,075 Nunes Nov. 13, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 793,775 France Nov. 23, 1935 

